LOST HORIZON (1973) coming to Blu-ray via Twilight Time on December 11, 2012!

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/7/12 at 6:32pm

The latest info:

Home Theatre Forum LINK

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/7/12 at 7:20pm

Wow. Just wow! (Even if a part of me is upset we still don't have films like Dark at the Top of the Stairs even on regular DVD, I have to say I'm excited). Now I'm kinda glad I never gott the DVD-R release, I'll wait for this.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/7/12 at 7:23pm

And Bonjour Tristesse! And *coff* Blue Lagoon!

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 8/7/12 at 9:57pm

Wow! Lost Horizon! Just wow!

[Dollypop]

Posted: 8/7/12 at 10:54pm

Why? Just why?

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 8/7/12 at 11:20pm

The World Is A Circle Dolly. Never forget it

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 4:36am

*Does Hermes Pan's brlliant fertility dace*

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 8:44am

Your definition of brilliant and my definition of brilliant are wooooorlds apart.

[Playbilly]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 9:23am

And this is what convinced Richard Rodgers that Liv could sing!

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 10:11am

Her singing was dubbed by Diana Lee in the movie.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 10:18am

For Mr. Roxy, Dollypop, Playbilly and all ...

A little Burt Bacharach, Hal David, Diana Lee (off screen), Liv Ullmann, Bobby Van, John Gielgud, and Peter Finch.


The World Is a Circle

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 10:28am

A blogger's take on "The World Is a Circle":

During a tour of the extensive grounds (with Gielgud sporting what appears to be Bette Davis's cap from the 1955 Oscar ceremony, upholstered with dark red fabric), Finch comes upon Ullmann and discovers that she is the schoolteacher. She presides over a passel of children (of varied ages) in a bamboo and rattan shelter with a chalkboard. Without prompting (or warning!), she begins belting out “The World is a Circle,” a ditty that just like its title seems to go round and round and with apt lyrics including “nobody knows where it really ends.”

The kids are shown playing onboard a makeshift merry-go-round and a Ferris wheel (!) before launching into what I call lumbersome choreography. (It is not only lumbering, but cumbersome, so I coined that word in order to save time!) Ullmann leads her pack of young'ns (who seem to multiply before our eyes) up a winding path, hysterically swaying her arms back and forth as if her costume was still wet when she put it on and she's hopelessly attempting to air dry it!! For whatever reason, Hermes Pan chose to enforce a style of “dance” onto these Terpsichorially-challenged youngsters that makes them look as if they have hip dysplasia and are floundering determinedly to the nearest healer for a shot of cortisone. Having given up on any sort of recognizable rhythm, they finally toss themselves down the side of a hill and roll to a stop.

And had this to say about the beginning of "Living Together, Growing Together":

Priest Shigeta gets the song “Living Together, Growing Together” off to a rocky start. Since Bacharach has chosen to kick the sing-song number off with a very low note, Shigeta's first word of the phrase, “Start with a man...” resembles what can only be described as a vocal fart. It gets worse as jingle singers, whose voices bear no relation whatsoever to the folks lip-synching on screen begin chiming in. When you watch this song unfold, you will say to yourself that the female chorus has sung as high as they are going to and that they cannot and will not proceed to squeal even higher, but they can and they do...


The rest is here

"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."

---

blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22

[Playbilly]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 10:51am

It became known as "Lost Investment". This movie needed 3D, and to come out 6 years earlier.

Thanks, b12b. Forgot about Lee. Or, at least tried to erase it from my memory. I never warmed to that faux Andrews style of singing.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 10:59am

It was pretty bad. Her husband dubbed Peter Finch.

And Andra Willis, from the Lawrence Welk Show (doesn't that say it all?), dubbed Olivia Hussey.

[Roscoe]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 11:07am

I think I'm going to make do with my Warner Archive DVD, but the notion of the Fertility Dance in Blu-Ray has some charm.

The movie's a train wreck, there's no two ways about it. How the director managed to make Liv Ullmann look like she'd never been in front of a camera before is one of the eternal mysteries.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 11:12am

Very true, Roscoe. When she joins Peter Finch at night in the courtyard after his big solo number, it seems like she's been hit over the head with a board before she comes out singing. That frozen deer-in-the-headlights look.

And still ... I already know I want to see that expression in remastered 1080p with DTS True HD sound.

LOL

[Roscoe]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 11:20am

But I will say that Mr. Charles Boyer manages to rise above the general awfulness, delivering a surprising performance of real dignity -- he's the only person to emerge from the film unscathed.

[Renart]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 11:34am

Bette Midler famously said during her act at the time, "I never miss a Liv Ullmann musical -- I call it 'Lost Her Reason'!"

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 5:30pm

And still ... I already know I want to see that expression in remastered 1080p with DTS True HD sound.

I hears ya. You're coming thru loud and clear!

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/8/12 at 7:39pm

"Your definition of brilliant and my definition of brilliant are wooooorlds apart."
Ha! Probably not in actuality...

[best12bars]

Posted: 12/10/12 at 7:27pm

Got my copy today (a day before the street date), and I'm watching it now.

It looks and sounds fantastic! The DVD already had a terrific picture and sound, but this is even better. I think they did some additional work on it, too, it doesn't seem to be a straightforward upgrade, especially where the audio is concerned, but the picture balance/levels have improved as well.

It came with a nice little color booklet too with photos.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 12/10/12 at 8:09pm

I know where some of my Xmas money will be going! Great to hear.

[sondheimboy2]

Posted: 12/11/12 at 5:18pm

I'm happy for you best12bars! Were there any special features? Cut scenes? Extra songs?

Or is it just a "Hey! You're lucky we even released this thing!"?

[best12bars]

Posted: 12/11/12 at 5:32pm

All but one of the special features from the DVD are on the new BD, and they are all now in HD!

The interview with Ross Hunter (listed at 36 minutes, but they actually cut out all the film clips, so it runs 10) was, for some reason, not included. But the excellent vintage "making of" film is there, plus the Bacharach demos with the still gallery, and the trailers and TV spots. All in HD, but keep in mind, they weren't restored to begin with, so they still have plenty of flaws.

The additional "special features" (not on the DVD) are the isolated film score and the full-color mini booklet with photos.

[best12bars]

Posted: 12/11/12 at 5:35pm

As for cut scenes and songs, those were all reinstated (and fully restored) for the DVD release. This is the same version that's on the BD.

The picture is definitely better all around because of the boost to HD and a few level tweaks here and there, but the real improvement is the audio mix. It's far superior to the 5.1 mix on the DVD (which was already very good). I think they tinkered with it when they isolated the tracks to create a secondary audio channel (of just the score). Anyway, it's a big step up.